Sep 13, 2010

Book Review - The Stone Traveler

Sixteen year old Tag can't believe he's in this much trouble. He's not actually a member of the gang known as the Primes, all he did was spray paint some graffiti that caught their attention. In all honesty, ever since his dad and brother left, Tag just wants to be alone. And it's certainly not his fault that the Primes nearly beat up his goofy cousin, Ethan. But his mom is furious about these gang-related activities and insists that Tag send the whole summer at his grandpa's lakeside cabin, which is not Tag's idea of a good time. So he does what any self-respecting teenager would do: run away. But he doesn't get far before he encounters three strange men carrying an even stranger object, a stone that glows with radiant light as bright as a thousand sparklers. Tag doesn't steal the stone, not exactly. He feels like he is supposed to take it. But he doesn't expect the stone to transport him through space and time to a place he's never seen before, a place that looks an awful lot like the ancient lands described in the Book of Mormon. And he definitely doesn't expect to join Sabirah, the entrancing daughter of Samuel the Lamanite, on a quest to rescue her father and brother from the evil King Jacob. And he absolutely doesn't expect to be captured by Jacob's minions and prepared as a sacrifice to the evil idol of the city. But just as Tag faces his death, a terrible storm begins to break, and the ground cracks into jagged pieces. And he's not sure which event will impact his life more: his captor's knife coming at his body, the violent tempest sweeping the land... or the men who later appear, glowing even more brightly than the traveler's stone.

About the Author:

Kathi Oram Peterson was born in the small town of Rigby, Idaho. Since childhood she has loved reading and writing stories. After raising her family, she put her writing on hold to earn a BA in English and a minor in sociology at the University of Utah. Upon graduation, she worked for a curriculum publisher writing and editing concept and biography books for children.

I have to start by saying how much I enjoyed this book. It took me a few pages to get into the characters, but once I did, there was no putting it down. Kathi's descriptions pulled me into a world I could only imagine before and made me feel like I was there. I love Tag's struggle with his family life and how he used his weaknesses to gain strength over his enemies.

My only complaint was in Tag's voice. While his dialogue was dead on, I felt at times that the narrative and internal dialogue was too old for him and mimicked Sabirah's which was more proper. It wasn't something that I felt hurt the book or the story, but because I'm also a writer, I noticed it.

I highly recommend The Stone Traveler to youth and adults. It was very enjoyable to read.

The Stone Traveler - Blog Tour Contest

When: Weekdays in September.

Important Rule: Leave a comment on "every" site on the tour.

Monday through Friday commenter names will be collected from the blog tour. On Saturday a name will be drawn to win a prize that includes a very cuddly toy jaguar; a stone necklace; and chocolates with the flavor of South America—real cacao and chili. The winner will be announced on the following Monday.

The GRAND prize for The Stone Traveler blog tour will be a (drumroll, please) Kindle. The cutoff to be eligible is midnight on September 30. The winner will be announced October 4th. If you find the tour midway through and want to participate, you can still go back and comment on every blog simply by going to www.kathiswritingnook.com. Starting in September the sidebar will list each stop on the tour as they are posted, making it very easy to click to any of the sites and leave a comment. AND even if you’ve already won one of the weekly drawings, your name will still go in the jar for the Kindle.

Disclaimer: I occasionally receive books for review directly from authors and publishers at no cost to me. This in no way influences my opinion of the book. My review is my honest opinion and has not been swayed by anyone in any way.

I can't wait to read this! Time travel is such a cool topic, and I love getting lost in new worlds (in fiction, of course; not sure how I'd feel if that happened to me in real life, haha!). Thanks for the review!

You are the second author to mention having an issue with the voice, which can be distracting if it isn't "true" or done right. However, I still think it sounds like an interesting read and interesting point is brought up. If you don't connect with the "voice" of the author can you still enjoy the book? Very interesting, indeed.

Thanks, Christine, for your review. You make a good point about Tag's voice. It did sound too old, but then, I also don't care for those books in which the writer's trying so hard to sound teenagerly that the characters just come across as idiotic.

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